"...The quality and variety of produce at the farmers’ markets is unparalleled right now. Asparagus, young spinach, golden beets, bunching onions, strawberries, baby carrots, celery tops, radishes, kale, parsnips, lettuces, and more are all vigorous and without blemish...."

"...Although I have yet to see it with my own eyes, Farmer Willie McKemie is bringing tender, young asparagus to the Barton Creek Farmers’ Market and the Mueller Farmers’ Market. You have to get there early, though..."

"...The cold air might wither the squash blossoms, but it won’t get cold enough to damage the squash, or the tomatoes or the peppers.....at least it isn’t predicted to. Fruitful Hill Farm will be bringing the first of this years (outdoor-grown) cucumbers tomarket on Saturday, at the Barton Creek Market and the Sunset Valley Market...."

"...Offerings include a short rib burger, roasted lamb breast with merguez, and grilled zucchini with toasted farro, ricotta, basil, and lemon. Their Austin menu serves the same choice meats as those served at their Brooklyn open-market locations, where they currently serve 500-700 short ribs per weekend, but the Parlor & Yard location has allowed them to expand their menu to offer even more self-proclaimed untraditional barbecue...."

"...By the time I got to the 2 Happy Children Farm table last week, the cantaloupes were all sold out; this week, there should be enough to last all day. They will also have seedless watermelons (Barton Creek Market and Cedar Park Market)...."

"...There are going to be Hill Country peaches at the markets this weekend! The peach crop is going to be small this year, even tiny -- but there are going to be some. The terribly dry conditions have concentrated the peach flavors; the ones I bought last weekend from Markley Family Farm had amazing, intense flavor and color...."

"...H-E-B/Central Market: H-E-B and Central Market are accepting customer donations through their statewide tear pad campaign. Shoppers can choose at checkout to add an additional $1, $3, or $5 to their bill for donation, which H-E-B will split between Red Cross, the Salvation Army, and Feeding Texas..."

"...The Gaines couple's show, Fixer Upper, entices somewhere around 35,000 visitors a week to exit the interstate to make the pilgrimage to Waco. I recently explored the Gaines’ Waco – their highly popular Magnolia Market and a few of the homes that have appeared on the show.
Rocket Pad..."

"...Right now the highest concentration of affordability, serving residents with incomes down to 30% MFI, is at Wildflower Terrace, a senior housing complex off Manor Road. The single-family homes designated "affordable" are mixed in with the "market" rate houses throughout Mueller..."

"...Now each competing spirit is evaluated in six categories: aroma, finish, flavor, value, probability of re-purchasing, and probability of recommendation. While the judging has taken place remotely – by a panel of 13 judges from the International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC) – the winner will be revealed at Fair Market..."

"..."I wanted to make it like a botanical garden/food forest/native plant exhibition. Just about everything that grows in Texas that produces food for people or wildlife is there in my yard." Her roster reads like a farmers' market menu: Texas persimmons, regular persimmons, peaches, plums, pluots, apples, cherries, grapevines, blackberry vines, pomegranates, figs, lemons, oranges, kumquats, loquats, elderberries, and more..."

"..."Before Prohibition, there were thousands of distilleries all over the country, and every little community had their local distiller," says Lisa Braunberg, co-founder and head of marketing for the upcoming Still Austin Whiskey Co. After the 21st Amendment was ratified, only a few operations survived and largely remain the big names in whiskey today..."

"...Why do I think that, and how can we get there? I try to cling to the belief that while there are a myriad of interests and viewpoints out there, they're not all necessarily in conflict. So to the person with the "Stop Code Next" sign who's afraid that the new code is going to flood her yard and price her out of her neighborhood, I think the city will be able to promise better *flood mapping (and *strategies to deal with it), and *better protection for "market affordable" housing stock than are currently in place..."

"...The one thing that you see is that piracy, in the form of content piracy, is almost always an indicator of more efficient technologies that let you do some really unique things that consumers find valuable. They break down old business models and they change the way business might be done, but one thing they've never actually done is shrink a market..."

"..."Whenever we're having workshops and there's diverse communities in the room, especially black and Latino communities, people always talk about their grandmothers, or abuelitas, cooking food and sharing with the neighborhood ... And also the importance of food selling, especially among black women and Latina women – selling food that's not sold at the supermarket but just to your neighbors..."

"...According to Trinh, who is representing the clients, there was no legal avenue to avoid that outcome. "There are no rent-control laws in Texas," she said, "and the lack of affordable housing for low-income tenants creates a landlord's market, so they are able to increase rent and create more onerous rules, which allow them to exploit and retaliate against tenants." Never­theless, Trinh and the association are working toward the formation of a tenant cooperative..."

"...On the other side of the life-and-death fence, Jayson Hawkins of Smegma,
accused of murdering a patron of the Blue Flamingo following a performance
there (see last week's column), was apprehended last Wednesday at his
girlfriend's apartment in San Marcos. The girlfriend was also arrested for
harboring a criminal.
It's All in the Wrist SXSW has announced that next year they're changing their wristband policy.
Under the new rules, wristbands for the music festival will no longer be
marketed nationally..."

Will the driver-eat-driver "free market" imposed by billionaire corporations rule the day?

News ColumnDecember 23, 2015, by Michael King

"...The real issue, represented in the explicit threats of the companies to leave the large and growing Central Texas market if they don't get their way, is whether the community's democratically elected representatives retain the authority to regulate businesses operating in Austin, or if the driver-eat-driver "free market" imposed by billionaire corporations will instead rule the day, where the weakest go to the wall.
Bullying Tactics..."

Land-use advocates at AURA are calling on Council to approve the ADU ordinance

News StoryNovember 19, 2015, by Michael King

"...• Also on the housing front (more or less) is Item 92, a public hearing considering an ordinance to revise the density bonus program for planned unit developments – in theory to make it more difficult for developers wanting PUD entitlements to pay "fees-in-lieu," instead of creating on-site affordable housing units. (In light of the Travis Central Appraisal District's current position on previously affordable units at Mueller – that rising market rates apply for appraisal purposes – Council will presumably be wondering if on-site affordability remains enforceable.)..."

County rejects BFI deal but isn't willing to fight landfill proposal at state level

News StoryNovember 16, 2007, by Daniel Mottola

"...BFI district manager Brad Dugas said last month that Sun­set Farms could fill its permitted capacity by 2011 at present disposal rates and that BFI has had difficulty locating a new landfill site due to "not in my back yard concerns." "I believe we provide a valuable service to the community," Dugas said. "We want to stay in business in the Austin market, and in order to provide uninterrupted service, we need that additional capacity to continue to look for a new landfill in the area." Dugas added that most people don't realize how much BFI's disposal rate of 3,000 tons of waste per day really is..."